Can-soldering machine



C. STBICKLER. CAN SOLDERINGMACHINE. APPLICA TION FILED JUNES, 19%9.

Pa'nd Sept. 27

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CAN SOLDERING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5,19I9.

1,391,867, Patenasepn 27,1921.

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CAN SOLDERING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5,1919.

Patented Sept. 27, 1921.

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UNITED STATES" PATENT OFFICE.

' QJOHN Q/VSTRICKLER, or sAN FRANoIsoo, oALIonNIA,

` CAN-SOLDERING MAGHINII.v

Application led June 5, 1919. `Serial No. 301,880.

`cisco and State ofCalifornia,have invented new and/useful linprovements in Can-Soldering Machines, ofwhich the following is a specification. .Y i

. The present invention relates to an improved machine for soldering end seams of cans, which 'will perform the work automatically and without any manual labor thereon, and which, after soldering two edges of one can end', will turn the can onequarter turn and `then automatically solder thereto the other two edges of said can end.

'In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1' is a plan view of my improvedmachine; Fig. 2 is a side View thereof; Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view on the linefr3-3 of Fig. 1 on an enlarged scale; Fig. 4 is a plan view of the major vportion of Fig. .3, the dotted line outlining the Vposition of the can in con-y tact with the solder applying feed, the supporting table being omitted; Fig. 5 is a cross section along the line 5-5 of Fig. 3, showing the solder wire kfeed rolls and driv- Y ing sprockets; Fig. 6 is an elevation of Fig.

`5 disclosing in a better positionthan in Fig.

5 the hinge on which Visniounted the solder feed; Fig. 7 is an end View of Fig. 1 taken from the approach end of the machine, the

, hold down rolls and'supporting standards being omitted; Fig. 8 isa transverse partly diagrammatic sectional -view showing the relative position of .feed table supporting p rails and the pipes for applying heat to the.V

Referringto thevdrawing, 1 indicates a table top, preferably made of cast iron, supported at suitable intervals4v upon legs or framepieces 2, and formed with a central longitudinal depression or groove 3, andvwith uprights 4 at suitableintervals at the side of the table top, and supporting rails ,6. Supported on said table and guided by x said rails 6 are can bodies 7, which are advanced on ysaid table top by means of a tendin than t at of a can body, and traveling between said rails.

The present 4invention 'will be Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented sept.' 27,1921.

ing can bodies which, between their ends,

are of square cross section, but the machine 1 will operateequally as well on cans which, between'their ends, are of rectangular cross section, even though not square, and on cans which are of irregular shape.

Said sprocket chain 8 passes around an idle sprocket wheel' 11 at oneend and a driving sprocket wheel 12 at the other end, said latter wheelr being mounted on a shaft 13 carrying fast and loose pulleys 14, 16; or

the shaft can, if desired, be driven by intermediate reducing gear from a counter-shaft having the fast and loose pulleys thereon. The can bodies, with the can ends secured thereon, but not soldered thereto, and with the proper flux applied to the joints betweenl thecanpbody and can ends, are supplied to the table at one end'and travel thereon in the direction of thearrow in an uprightposition, one end being supported upon the table. The can travelsoverthe ilainesof4 gas issuing from perforationsin two'pipes 17, immediately underneath the can in recesses 18 in the table, the effect of which flames, which are directed loutward against the inner sui'faceoflthe seam 19 made by the can body with the lowermost can end, is to heat Athe adjacent portion ofthe can body in preparation to applying the 'solder thereto and also to heat the corresponding edges of the can and cause the flux, whichv has been previously placed thereon, to` flow downward.

After the can has traveled in this position for a sufficient length of time, it travels between perforated burner pipes 21 so 1ocated thatV the flames of gas issuingthere- `from are directed inwardly andhorizontally against the outer surfaces of the adjacent seaiiied edges of the can `body and can end. These pipes are short as compared with the pipes 17 the purpose thereof being to heat the exact place suliiciently in preparation of the' application ofthe solder, so that the solder will be drawn down into the seam.

At the end of the short pipe 21, the can bodytravels into the portion of the apparatus where the solder is applied thereto. The solder is in the form of wire 22, and is applied from a reel A 23, mounted'upon a spindle 24 extending parallel with the lonifgitudinal direction of the table from a illustrated and' described in reference to what are known as square cans?, thaty is, those j havbracket 26 depending from a frame 27 pivoted near its rear end upon a vertical shaft' Vwhich also travels arounda sprocket wheel 49 on a counter-shaft 51, carrying a bevel gear 52 meshing with a bevel gear 53 on a transverse shaft 54, which carries a sprocket wheel `55 around which travels sprocket chain 56, traveling around a sprocket wheel 57, on the transverse driving shaft 13.

Said solder wire, is, however, prevented from being gripped by said gripping rollers, except when a can is passing, by reason of lthe gripping roller 36 being mounted on an Vidle shaft 41, carried by an upwardly eX- tending arm 59 of a bell crank lever 60 mounted upon a shaft 61 `journaled in the frame 27, the other arm 62 of which is attachedto one end of a stretched coiled spring 63, the other end of which spring is attached to a bracket 64, extending from the framepiece 2 of the table. Said upwardly extending arm 59 carries an inclined plate 66 which impinges against a roller 67 carried on said bracket 64. lhen, however, a can is passing said soldering mechanism, it imfpinges against an upper inclined edge of a cam plate 68 attached by screws 33 to the frame 27, and when said can body passes over said edge, it depresses the same, thereby `rocking outwardly the front portion of' the frame 27 upon its shaft 28,thereby moving outwardly the shaft 61 of the bell crank lever, and causing theroller 67, which is stationary, to engage a more ninward portion of the plate 66, thereby permitting the idle.

shaft 41 of the gripping roller 36 to approach more closely to the shaft 39 of the gripping roller v35,*thereby causing the gripping wheels to grip the wire.

the gripping wheels, vis advanced in a guide 32 and passes out at the rear end thereof in close proximity to the en d of the can body.

lVhen the cans move on said track to a position adjacent to that at which solder is applied, they are held down on said track by rollers 70 carried by a single shaft 7 5,' the ends of which are contained in upwardly extendinggrooves 89 in standards 85 supported by the frame of the machine.

As the advancing end of the solder wire contacts with the heated end of the can body,

it is melted thereby, and solder is deposited upon aside of said can body in close proximity to the can end as 1t 1s advanced past vSaid wire. rso gripped, and fed by the rotary motion of said wire end by the sprocket chain 8. `It is understood that 'there sone'such solder wire at each side of the can body and in this way, solder is applied to two opposite sides of the lower end of the can body as it is propelled upon the table top 1 by the chain 8. After the canleaves the location where solder is applied to each of two opposite sides thereon as above explained, it passes between rotatingV wipers 69 onv shafts 71 rotating in bearings 72 carried by the frame ofl the. machine, said shafts having thereon grooved pulleys 73 rotated by belts 74 eX- tending downwardly from overhead. shafts and pulleys, the latter not being shown. The can then travels to a location in which `the side guides 6 diverge from each other to form a wide guideway 74, in which a finger 76 extends upwardly from a chain 77 traveling around sprocket wheels 78 and 79, the latter being loose on a shaft 81 and formed integral with a sprocket wheel 82 around which travels a downwardly extending sprocket chain 83 traveling around a sprocket wheel84 formed integrally with a bevel pinion 86, which mesheswith a bevel gear 87 fastened on a shaft 51. The wheels 82, 84, 86, and 87 are so proportioned that the sprocket chain 82 makes a complete cycle during theforward advance `of a can through the distance between two cans. Euring this movement, the linger 76engages the back of the can near one corner thereof`- travels between soldering mechanism of precisely the reame character as that by whichv the first edges of the body of the can were soldered so that the other lower edges of the can are also soldered.` 1

While I haveherein shown -one specic method of applying solder to the` can, namely, in the form of a solder wire fed from a reel, my invention yis by no. means limited thereto, but may be used equally as well if thesolder is lapplied by a method, in which the can body is dipped into molten solder before the end is applied thereto.

A great 'advantage resides in applying the heating flame from lunderneath the can, because the solder flows more easily thel hotter it becomes, and therefore appearsvto tend to low'to the'V hottest point. By heating the can from underneath, the hottest point is the lowest, and, therefore, the solder runs downwardly, into the seam ofthe can body to the can-V end. y f

1.1In a machine of the character described, the combination of wheels coperating with each other to grip'and advance solder wire, means for movablysupporting one of said wheels so that it can be moved to or from the other wheel, means for rotating both of said wheels, irrespective of the posi-1 tion of the last-named wheel, a can track, means for moving cans in succession on said track, and means adapted to be operated by each can in succession for moving said movably supported wheel toward the other.

2. In a machine of the character described, the combination of wheels coperating with each other to grip and advance solder wire, means for movably supporting one` oi' said wheels so that it can be moved to or from the other wheel, means for rotating both of said wheels, irrespective of Vthe position of the last-named wheel, a can track, means for moving cans in succession on said track, a. spring for movin said wheels together, a device for restraining the operation of said spring, and means actuated by the movement of each can in succession for rendering said device inoperative.

3. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a track, pushers for advancing cans in succession on said track, means for applying wire solder to sides of the can closely adjacent to the sides of the track, means, operated in unison with the advancing means, for turning each can through 900, whereby its sides to which solder has been applied extend transversely to said track, and means, operated in unison with said advancing means, for applying solder to the sides adjacent to said track of said can in its new position.

4. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a track, means for advancing cans in succession on said track, means, operated in unison with the advancing means, for applying solder to sides of the can closely adjacent to the sides of the track, means, operated in unison with i' 5. In a machine of the character de-V scribed, a track, means for advancing cans in succession on said track, means for applying solder to the cans, an endless belt intermediate the ends of the track and arranged to engage each can as it moves past the belt and means for operating said belt at a greater rate of speed than said advancing means so as to turn the cans while the latter rest upon and are advanced by said advancing means.

` 6. In a machine of the character described, the combination with a track, of means for advancing cans in succession on said track, means operated in unison with the advancing means for applying solder to certain sides of the cans and additional means operated in unison with the advancing means for applying solder to other sides of the cans, comprising movable elements having edges projecting inwardly from opposite sides of the track to within a distance from each other less than the width of the cans and adapted to engage the cans during the advance` thereof.

J.Y C. s TinoKLER 

